Fans of musical theater adaptations of Shakespeare, you should be sitting down for this. Cole Porter's Kiss Me Kate, which was to run from September 28th to October 3rd at the Shanghai Grand Stage, has been canceled! The show, put on by Sydney's Brave Touch Productions, recently fared rather poorly during its Beijing run, and all shows in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen have been shuttered as a result. Only 25 percent of tickets in Beijing had been sold, while Shanghai fared little better, with only a third of available tickets sold as of yesterday. Full ticket refunds can be redeemed at the Shanghai Grand Stage from 6pm to 8pm beginning tomorrow, or from 10am to 5:30pm at any ticket agency where the original ticket was purchased. Though some sources claim the last day for claiming ticket refunds is October 10th, we'd recommend getting them before October 3rd, just to be safe. For refunds, you can call either (21) 61204560, or (21) 61326581. more ›

What's that joyful noise? It's the sound of people shrieking upon hearing the news that immaculately cheek-boned frontman Brett Anderson (last in Shanghai for a solo gig in 2010) and his reunited Suede band chums will be performing at a venue near you! Currently on their first Asian tour since 2003, the band will be performing in Shanghai for only the second time ever, at the Shanghai Grand Stage (recently host to fellow UK pop-chart veterans The Cranberries) next Tuesday, August 9th. more ›

"Try to understand what I say, don't turn away from me." We'd imagine that this is the internal monologue The Cranberries are running through vis-a-vis their relationship with the fickle consumers of adult-contemporary musical stylings. Back in the hot minute that was 1995, The Cranberries (along with OJ Simpson's lack of shame and Jim Carrey's ability to choose decent roles) were a cultural force to be reckoned with, serenading the bedrooms of the angst-ridden the world over with hits like "Zombie", "Linger", "Dreams" and "Ode to My Family"...all of which they'll be performing at the Shanghai Grand Stage on Tuesday, July 26th! more ›

Everybody's favorite annoying pop-punk princess is back on tour--fresh off a divorce and with new singles like "What The Hell". We wonder if this means a Brody Jenner (of The Hills fame) sighting? Get your tickets here. more ›

Second time's the charm! After much speculation and a thwarted attempt last year, Bob Dylan is playing Shanghai on April 8th and tickets are going fast! The cheapest two sections are sold out on Smartticket already so you'll have to fork over at least 480RMB now to see the legendary 69-yr old rocker, but still, we wouldn't sit on this one for too long! more ›

Via former superstar Shanghaiist contributor Jake Newby: "The Kanye West concert originally scheduled for September 23 at Hongkou Stadium has been postponed. Organisers China West have said that it is definitely a postponement, not a cancellation, and that the gig will now take place on November 3 at Shanghai Grand Stage." Newby points out that this postponement is not due to permit problems (a la Jay Z '06), instead it was done to allow promoters to add a Beijing Kanye gig on November 1. We'll see. more ›

And here are some of the style awards that were given out last night at the Shanghai Grand Stage. Some really dubious choices there: more ›

Ex-convict/drunk driver/pornstar Heiress/socialite/singer/designer Paris Hilton — fresh from her modelling gig with Fila Sportswear in Seoul — is now in Shanghai for the first time to attend Friday's 2007 MTV Awards and Style Gala at the Shanghai Grand Stage. Apparently, she didn't think the Hilton hotel would make her feel at home here, so she decided to check into the Grand Hyatt at the Jinmao instead. Shanghai Daily, believe it or not, has the scoop:... more ›

Seems like the event a lot of people are talking about is the upcoming Linkin Park concert this Sunday. From what we have heard there are still some tickets available (from Emma ticketing) but supposedly the event has sold extremely well. If that's true, it's impressive, considering this show is being held in Hongkou Stadium, a venue three times the size of the Shanghai Grand Stage. We have also heard lots of people knocking the... more ›

As we speak (type?), RnB diva and superstar, Beyoncé is probably relaxing in her luxury suite somewhere in this city. We, on the other hand, are not relaxing. We are anxiously awaiting tomorrow night., when she will take the Shanghai Grand Stage to belt our some songs and shake that tailfeather of hers. In case you forgot (and how could you really?), we told you about the concert ages ago, so most of you probably... more ›

According to recent rumors we've heard, tickets are on sale this week for the biggest show of the year (in our humble opinion), The Beyoncé Experience! Beyoncé (aka Beyoncé Knowles), the 27-year old singer, model, and actress, is currently one of the biggest superstars in America. She began her career with the ginormously successful all-girl group Destiny's Child and has been just as prosperous as a solo artist. She brings her world tour called The... more ›

Tomorrow night, a possibly pregnant Christina Aguilera will perform at the Shanghai Grand Stage. Since May, Shanghaiist has been looking forward to this extravaganza and now that we bought our tickets (thanks Taobao!), we are as happy as a clam! Based on her previous stops in her Back to Basics tour, the setlist should look something like this: 1. Ain't No Other Man 2. Back in the Day 3. Understand 4. Come On Over Baby... more ›

During the golden week, Shanghaiist published the rumor that world class diva Christina Aguilera (the artist formally known as X-tina) would be coming to Shanghai to belt out some of her latest hits. At the time of the announcement, Ms. Aguilera was awaiting approval from the Shanghai government censors, something Jay-Z is very familiar with. At the time, Shanghaiist was "praying on every dumpling" that the censors would approve the concert because we are big... more ›

Recently, Shanghai has had its fill of hip hop, indie rock, and classic rock artists come to perform for the expats locals. We'll now get a bit of the pop and R&B vocal genres with the recent announcement of Christina Aguilera's Asian tour dates, which includes a stop in Shanghai. It will be her only concert in China ... sorry, Beijing. The tour is part of Christina's Back to Basics tour, featuring songs from her... more ›

It's funny all the flap that was made here about the lyrical content of certain Rolling Stones and Eric Clapton songs, not to mention visa/vulgarity issues for Jay-Z and others, yet Roger Waters slips under the radar and delivers a long, loud set full of blatant references to just about everything that the authorities were presumably guarding against. Who knows, perhaps his lyrics were screened and his set-list given the thumbs up. For the sake of future tours, we hope that's the case. more ›

Shanghaiist has learnt that if you synchronize the seminal Pink Floyd record The Dark Side of the Moon with the evening footage displayed on the Aurora building in Lujiazui, certain previously hidden messages are unearthed. more ›

Now that all the fuss and excitement surrounding Robin Gibb and Air Supply has died down, what do we have to live for during the coming cold and brutal winter months in Shanghai? In addition to our beloved electric blankets and space heaters, there's going to be a little something for everyone to look forward to as we plunge into the cold. more ›

We wonder if anyone in Shanghai will have a similar, albeit much less visceral, reaction when they learn that Robin Gibb is playing a show in Shanghai ... again. Gibb played Shanghai in May as part of his Magnetic Tour. Now he's playing November 18 at Shanghai Grand Stage ... as part of his Magnetic Tour. Tickets will range from RMB 280 to 2,280. We're sure this will appease all those jilted Robbie Williams and Jay-Z fans out there. We wonder if the Robin Gibb party bus will cruise the streets of Shanghai like it did in May -- anyone else see that? more ›

On the heels of yet another show brought down by the man (add Jet Echo’s Saturday show at Live Bar to that list), a night of power ballads was just what we needed. While our friends might be few, they did have an eighth row seat to the Sydney duo’s Halloween show at the Shanghai Grand Stage. more ›

Although the heat and humidity are seemingly unrelenting, it's safe to say that summer is half over. This means that there are only a precious couple months for the city's beloved Mandopop stars to make pit stops at the local outdoor stadiums. JJ Lin and S.H.E. have already come and gone, but fear not, you one or two other Mandopop fans reading this, more superstars are on the way. more ›

We have front row tickets to see the Boys next Wednesday, which we scooped up absolutely gratis, as usual from a friend of a friend of a colleague of a tennis partner of a turtle of a friend ... well some crazy fellow didn't want the tickets anyway. more ›

China Daily has three photos from Michael Bolton's performance at the Shanghai Grand Stage last night -- and we can almost hear his vocal cords shredding just looking at them. Here is the caption that ran with the photos: more ›

She's got some guy with her, too. Can't tell who it is because of the sunglasses. But who cares? Katie Holmes is in Shanghai! The mystery man with Holmes must be kind of well known, however. It's been reported that he is trying to keep a low profile -- not easy when you have a 20-person entourage and your own six-car fleet. The man, who looks to be quite a bit older than Holmes, is said to have a taste for gay men Sichuan food, so much that he spent 5,000 yuan at a Sichuan place on Yan'an Lu (is that even possible?). Holmes and her beau are staying at the Four Seasons and have visited Yu Yuan and 3 on the Bund. Tomorrow night they are expected to hit the Shanghai Grand Stage for the 2005 MTV Style Gala. After Shanghai, Holmes will head to Xitang, an old water town in Zhejiang, which has been shut down for the filming of some movie. Reportedly, Xitang will receive 100 million yuan for its trouble. We're sure much of that will trickle down to the people who need it most. more ›

In the scheme of enjoyable outings, Shanghaiist rates a night at the opera fairly high. Not as high as the time we saw Fugazi at Metropolis in Brisbane, but certainly higher than a night on the couch watching Average Joe. more ›

It's fun going to see an orchestra, and it's even more fun to be rocked back and forth by the guy sitting behind you for an hour as he taps his legs. Or is that the other way around. We forget. more ›

Hello Shanghai! Big hair Japanese rockers L'Arc-en-Ciel hit Shanghai Saturday night and word is that tickets are selling well in both the high and low price ranges. more ›